March 12, 2014
COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina sophomore swimmer Marwan El Kamash will make his first appearance at the NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships as an individual, the NCAA announced with the release of the official psych sheet.
El Kamash is one of 270 participants (235 swimmers and 35 divers) who will compete at the championships, which will be held March 27-29 at the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center in Austin, Texas.
El Kamash will swim in the 100, 200 and 500 freestyle events at the championships. A native of Alexandria, Egypt, El Kamash has the 24h fastest time in the country in the 500 freestyle with a mark of 2:17.41. After qualifying for the A-Final at the SEC Championships in seventh with a new personal he lowered that time in the finals as he placed fifth. El Kamash has also been invited to swim in the in the 200 freestyle which he boasts the 38th best time at 1:35.24. His mark in the 100 freestyle is the 56th best in the event at 44.12.
Joining El Kamash will be a trio of school record breaking relay teams in the 800 freestyle, 200 medley and 400 medley which all met the NCAA’s qualifying standard.
The 800 freestyle team comprised of El Kamash, Kevin Leithold, Michael Flach and Gerard Rodriguez shattered the school record in the event with a time of 6:20.59 as the finished fifth with an NCAA `A’ cut at the SEC Championships. Despite finishing ninth in the 200 medley at SEC’s, the group of Jay Warner, Eric Lethander, Leithold and Flach set the school record in the event at 1:26.13, more than a half a second better last year’s group. The 400-medley relay of Warner, Leithold, Flach and El Kamash broke the school record with a mark of 3:11.58, which topped the group that set the record at the 2013 SEC Championships.
